Those Two Months
by Little Bit of Frog
Summary: Farah's take on what happened during those two months between the diner and Bergsberg. I don't own these characters. I just love writing about them and keep hoping we will get a season 3.
1. Chapter 1

Those Two Months

Author's Note: Finally getting to publish this. I have been wondering a lot about what happened during that time that Farah and Todd were on the run together between the seasons. Farah is such an awesome character. I love how she is such an amazing combination of kick ass/intelligent as well as neurotic/insecure. This is her perspective of that crazy time while they were fleeing Blackwing, and trying to find Dirk and Amanda before getting to Bergsberg.

* * *

Chapter 1

 _Something's wrong._

Farah could feel it all the way to her core. Dirk was not outside the diner. Of course he wasn't exactly known for staying still. He could have wandered off.

 _But he didn't._

She knew it as surely as she knew how to calculate the ballistics of a rifle at close range with no wind. This was wrong. Dirk had not left by his own free will. Her bodyguard instincts were screaming. She had to find Dirk.

Dirk may have become the Primary, but Todd was the Secondary. She had to find and secure him before she could go after Dirk. She walked briskly back into the diner. The entire place was in upset.

"Stay calm!" Said a waitress "We've dialed 911. They will be here soon! Just… give him some space!"

 _No!_

Farah shoved past the surprised waitress and darted down the hall towards the bathrooms.

 _Don't be him don't be him don't be him…_

But she knew it was. Just like she knew Dirk had been taken.

She could hear him before she could see him. Curled up on the floor and crying out in pain. Farah shoved the waiter out of the way who was blocking the path to Todd.

"Lady, you can't…"

"He's my fiancé!" she snapped, hoping he wouldn't press the issue. She did a quick assessment of Todd in an attempt to find the source of his pain. She couldn't find any injuries. He was holding his hands as if they were hurting, but nothing seemed to be wrong with them.

"Todd! Todd! What's happening?"

He didn't answer. He didn't seem to hear her. Something was beyond wrong.

"Step back!" said a large, balding man in a pair of round glasses and an overcoat. "I'm a doctor."

He knelt next to Todd and checked his pulse. Farah stared at the strange man. He was off. His coat was too heavy for the weather. Farah saw a glimmer of movement reflected in his spectacles.

She reacted on pure instinct. She spun around and punched the man who had crept silently behind her. She tossed him over Todd and he collided with the "doctor" who was just seconds away from injecting Todd with a syringe he'd pulled from his suspicious coat.

Farah grabbed Todd by his shoulders and forced him up. She was afraid he'd fight her, but he didn't. While he didn't seem to have any grasp on what was happening or why, he stumbled compliantly alongside Farah as she dragged him to her car and tossed him in the passenger side.

She buckled him fast and saw a group of men circling around them. She jumped in and floored it, forcing the men to break formation as she plowed through.

A bullet grazed her headrest as she peeled out onto the road.

Todd was still hysterically crying and holding his hands as if they were on fire.

Farah weaved through traffic and raced to get out of the city,

Eventually, Todd slumped over, unconscious from exhaustion and pain. His seatbelt was the only thing holding him up.

Farah was a half hour out of the city and it was time to change cars. She didn't think they had been followed, but she couldn't take any chances. The hidden sedan was her favorite getaway car. It was forgettable and nondescript, but it had an engine that ensured that she could outrun just about anyone if she had to.

She pulled in and parked in the dilapidated barn on the edge of nowhere. She took a deep breath. Then she got out of the car and went to the passenger door. She looked through the window at Todd. He was still out cold. She was afraid to wake him.

 _He could be hysterical again when he wakes up. Make sure the next vehicle is ready, then worry about transporting him._

"I know that." She snapped at the thoughts in her head. She closed her eyes and cursed. She thought she'd broken her habit of responding verbally to her thoughts.

She went to unlock the door of the next car, and realized something was off. Someone had been there. Recently. She drew out her gun and went outside and circled the barn. Then she saw it. The back of the barn had a bright red spray of graffiti that just said "3". On the ground under it was a black cloth. She lifted it and discovered it was a Mexican Funeral t-shirt. Under it were several bottles of Amanda's medication, a framed picture of Amanda, and a note tied to them with a rubberband. Farah took the note and read it.

"Hey Bodyguard,

We could smell you all over this place. Drummer said she doesn't need these anymore. We stole the picture from her brother, and the rest is from a life she left behind. Figured you'd know what to do with them."

Farah carefully carried the pile of items and put them in the new car. She tried not to think about the vampires "smelling her" all over her hideout. If they could track her, who else could? And how? What other strange ways could Blackwing track her down?

She examined the car and found everything in order. Full tank of gas. Clothing, food, medicine, cash, ect all packed and ready. She didn't bother to take the suitcases with clothes for Patrick Spring or Lydia. Lydia's clothes were too small for Todd and Patrick's were too big. Todd and Farah were close enough in size that they would have to share from Farah's suitcase until they found more. He was wearing sturdy shoes, which was good since he would likely have to make do with just that pair for a while. The boots she had packed were far too small for his feet.

Once she saw that the car was ready to go, she looked over at Todd.

 _Stop stalling. It's Schrodinger's Cat. You have to wake him to know._

She took a deep breath and carefully opened his door.

"Todd." She said as she gently touched his shoulder. "Todd, wake up. It's time to wake up."

Nothing happened at first, so she very delicately shook his shoulder. "Todd?"

He groaned and slowly opened his eyes. He seemed confused. He looked up at Farah.

"I… wha… What's going on? Where's Dirk? Where… where…" His eyes became wide "Amanda! Where is Amanda?!"

"Amanda left with the Rowdies. Todd, what happened back there?"

Todd unbuckled himself and scrambled out of the car. He was pale and unsteady. Farah grabbed him to help support his wobbly frame.

"Amanda called me!" he cried "Something was happening to her! We have to help!"

"Todd!" Farah barked. He was getting unfocused and wasn't thinking clearly. She had to get him together.

 _Him or you?_

"Todd," Farah said a bit gentler this time. "I found you on the floor of the diner screaming. What happened?"

Todd looked surprised. "On the floor screaming? Why would I…?" realization spread over his face. "My hands."

"What about your hands?"

He looked down at them. "My hands… they were… burning. All the flesh was coming off…" he sounded so confused.

"Your hands are fine." She said.

"My… my hands are… fine…" he said. His eyes kept getting wider. "No. No no no no…."

"Todd, calm down. What are you talking about?"

"It can't… I can't… NO!"

The last word came out in a shriek of pain as he suddenly and violently arched his back and dropped to his knees. He was screaming again, but instead of the focus behind his hands, it seemed to be his back. None of it made sense… unless.

A horrible thought leapt into Farah's mind.

 _No…_

She raced to the pill bottle with Amanda's name on it and forced the recommended dosage into Todd's mouth. She wasn't sure what scared her more, the thought of it doing nothing, or the thought of it working.

After a few terrifying moments, the screaming stopped and Todd slumped forward.

"Oh shit." She said.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

They were five days out of Seattle and Farah was still worried that they were shaking off tails. It hadn't taken long to figure out that they were on the FBI wanted list and that her accounts were frozen. Blackwing was coming at them from all angles. The spent the first three days just tying to outrun the hunters behind them. She hadn't spotted anyone in the last two days, but she was afraid it was just because she was missing something important.

Farah had also become an unofficial expert on pararibulitis. She'd had to. Todd was her primary now and it was her job to keep him safe.

The first two weeks would be brutal. Every source agreed on that. Farah had hacked into medical databases and found everything written on it. Because of how rare it was, that wasn't much. And it was a very strange and unpredictable disease.

 _Not to mention terrifying._

Subjects who had recently developed the disease usually spent at least a month in the hospital. As the disease manifests, the attacks come hard and fast and frequently until the subject learns their personal triggers and their body adjusts.

Farah knew with his family history, Todd had to know a lot about it. Unfortunately, it seemed that talking about it was one of his major triggers. That was not uncommon. Just thinking about it during the early stages could induce another attack. He couldn't talk or hear about it for a full minute before he was incapacitated again. She wasn't sure which of them found that particular issue more frustrating.

On top of having to manage Todd's newfound condition, they were in constant danger of being discovered. On more than five occasions, they had to abandon a planned stop because Farah had spotted someone she was sure was there to look for them. When Todd would ask her how she knew, she really couldn't explain it. Like the "doctor" at the diner. They were just wrong. Farah was sure he would press the issue, but he didn't. Despite the fact that it made an already horrific situation even more stressful and challenging. They had nearly been out of options when she found a route that seemed safe. She hadn't spotted anyone that made her change their course in twenty-four hours. But every snapping twig or pair of headlights or passing plane made her heart leap into her throat as she tried to assess if this would be the one that they would have to fight their way out of. Or, more accurately, that she would fight their way out of. She just hoped Todd would be aware enough that she wouldn't have to carry him.

Whenever they could stop, Farah would devour whatever literature she could on how to help reprogram his brain to help him fight it and be able to deal with the symptoms. There was a lot of speculation, but not nearly enough information about actual human trials with encouraging results.

Todd slept a lot. That was apparently normal too. Subjects spent most of the first few days post diagnosis in an exhausted state. It was a combination of the body being worn out by the attacks, and also by the fact that a major side effect of the medication was drowsiness. Finally, by day four, Todd was awake more than he was asleep.

They had broken into an abandoned gas station and set up camp. Until they could get Todd's attacks a bit more under control, anywhere where someone was likely to hear the screams was out of the question. He'd had up to three in an hour, and that would be hard to explain.

"Lay down." Said Farah as she gestured to the blow up mattress they had set up on the filthy floor.

"I'm not that tired right now." Said Todd. He seemed relieved to be awake and alert.

"It's not rest. It's therapy. I've been doing a lot of research and have a plan. Lay down."

Todd complied and laid on his back.

"Ok." Said Farah. "Relax."

"I could relax more if you told me what you're about to do." He said.

"We're going to work on reprograming your triggers." Said Farah as she knelt next to the mattress near Todd's head.

"What are you…"

"Just relax." She said as she started tapping on his forehead with her index finger. "Focus on the sensation of the tapping. Breathe deep. In through the nose, out through the mouth. Deep, cleansing, intentional breaths."

She listened to Todd's breathing for close to a minute before she spoke again.

"Now," she said in a tone of voice that could best be described as yoga teacher on a cruise ship. "I am going to talk to you about your condition."

"I know all about my condition. I've been hearing about it and seeing it first hand since I was…"

"No talking." She said "Focus on the tapping and your breathing. I will do the talking."

"Look," he said "I appreciate what you're trying to do here but I don't think…"

"Listen!" she shouted in a voice that snapped him to attention with enough force that she was a little shocked that he didn't have an attack. "While you have been unconscious I've been working my ass off trying to keep us alive and becoming an expert on stuff I didn't even know existed two weeks ago! I know you're scared and I know you're going through something horrible that I can't even imagine and I even know that this method will probably end up being just a bunch of bullshit that doesn't work! But I'm trying! I'm willing to try something, anything, no matter how ridiculous if it even has a chance of helping you fight this thing! So can you humor me for ten minutes? Just ten minutes?!"

Her outburst had surprised her even more than it had Todd. She felt emotionally spent. How desperate and foolish had it been to even try this? It was stupid.

 _I'm stupid. Stupid to think I could do this._

She felt the burn of unwanted tears starting to creep up. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to push the tears back by sheer force of will. This was too much. They couldn't keep going like this. She couldn't keep him safe. She couldn't even keep Patrick alive and he could handle himself in a fight and wasn't having constant, painful hallucinations.

 _I can't do this. I've failed._

She jumped when she felt the gentle touch of Todd's hand on hers.

"You're right." He said "I'm sorry. You've been working hard on this and I've been too caught up in my own issues to even listen. Let's do this."

Farah blinked in surprise. She watched Todd close his eyes and begin deep breathing. She slowly began to tap on his forehead and swallowed the lump in her throat as she started to walk him through the process.

* * *

The next several days were better. Farah tried to hide her surprise that her method had actually worked. Todd was averaging two to four attacks a day. Not great, but certainly a significant improvement. They had started venturing to actual motels. They'd been forced to steal another car. They still didn't have a real plan, which was eating at Farah more then she let on. Todd kept insisting that something holistic would happen. Farah wasn't so sure. Though she had to admit there was something strongly holistic about finding Amanda's pills right when they needed them. But without Dirk or Rowdies around, what was the likelihood that something like that would happen again?

She was still in a bit of shock that Todd was adjusting so quickly. The progress he'd made in days typically took weeks.

"It's because of your sister." She said.

"What is?" asked Todd.

"You're progress. How your body is adapting to your disease and you're not in that constant state any more. You shouldn't be doing as well as you are. It's because you watched her go through the process and learned first hand how to cope with it."

"Well, I guess that's part of it." He said.

"And what's the rest?" she asked.

"Are you serious? Are you honestly going to just forget all that work you did with me to help reprogram the way I process my triggers? How I went from not being able to say the word pararibulitis without bursting into flames and now I can talk about it with you no problem because of what you did to help me?"

Farah crossed her arms. "Please. It was a crash course therapy out of desperation. I'm lucky I didn't make you worse."

"Are you kidding me right now?! You're really going to try and dismiss all the hard work and research your poured into a crazy genius plan that actually worked?"

"I cobbled together ideas. A professional would have done better."

Todd reached over and took her hands. She was surprised by the gesture and looked up into his steady gaze.

"Your cobbled together is easily on par with most people's masters thesis. You did it! You pulled it off not because you could push the right buttons and say the magic words. You created a solid plan and I believed in it because I believe in you."

She couldn't maintain eye contact any longer, and looked down at their hands. She both wanted to pull away and hold them tighter. She was self conscious about his confidence in her, but also felt comforted and craved the acceptance and support. Her grandmother had been the first, and for a long time the only, person who believed in her. Even when the rest of the family didn't understand her, Grandma Black had looked into her eyes and said, "You are as you should be. I am proud of you." When she died while Farah was in high school, she had never felt so alone. She didn't feel accepted again until she met the Spring family. Patrick was unwavering in his conviction that she was the very best for the job. For a long time, she thought he had settled for her. She was shocked when she discovered just how many people he had turned away to give her the job. Soldiers whose resumes and training left her in the dust. When she brought that to his attention, he had taken her by the shoulders and said "You are the best and only person for this job. Don't ever, ever doubt that." He had trusted her with everything, including Lydia. Lydia, who she loved and protected and fought for with everything she had. Lydia who had said that even when she was turned into a dog, all Farah had to do was show up and she knew it would be alright. Farah couldn't believe she had that kind of faith in her. It was hard to say goodbye to her. While she was thankful that Lydia was safe, Farah ached to be near her and hear her laugh again.

And now Todd. Todd believed in her. He saw her as more then a bundle of neurosis and anxiety. He squeezed her hands. His touch was warm and gentle and genuine. "You are amazing. Please, don't even forget that."

It was too much. She pulled away. He let her go.

"I'm… uh… I'm going to check the perimeter. Make sure we're still secure."

Todd's shoulders slumped slightly. "Sure. You're the expert."

 _You're no expert._ Said her inner voice. The voice was sounding more and more like her father again. She thought her therapist had helped her fix that. She felt like she'd regressed on a lot of things during their time on the run.

She stepped outside. She could see none of the typical signs they had been followed. Nevertheless, the tightness in her chest was growing. That ever present anxiety was building in the pit of her stomach.

 _You're missing something._

"No, I'm not." She muttered.

 _Look at you. Always missing the signs or overthinking everything. Usually both._

"It's fine. Everything's fine."

 _Is it?_

Panic set in and Farah ran back to the motel room. As soon as she opened the door, her eyes darted around. She couldn't see him. Then she heard the shower turn on. She sagged with relief. He was fine. Everything was fine.

 _It's never really fine._

"Shut up." She snapped as she removed her boots and crawled into bed. She hadn't slept much since leaving Seattle. It had begun to take it's toll. The heaviness that accompanied utter mental and physical exhaustion crept over her as she sank into the cheap mattress.

"I just need sleep." She said "Just need a little…"

She'd barely drifted off when she heard the screaming.

She was still mildly disoriented as she bolted towards the sound. She found Todd on the floor of the bathroom. The shower was still running, and he was naked and tangled in the torn shower curtain. He was screaming and writhing on the ground.

"What's happening?!" she cried.

"Acid!" he cried out "Burning!"

His nerves thought the water on his skin was acid.

She grabbed a towel and began frantically trying to dry him off.

 _You're missing something._

She ignored the thought as she tried desperately to bring relief to the helpless and terrified man on the cold floor.

 _You're missing something important._

Then she remembered. His pills.

She abandoned him and raced to the nightstand. She was running while she was opening the bottle and tripped. The pills flew everywhere.

While Farah was scrambling to recover the medicine, Todd was still screaming. It was only a matter of time before someone knocked on the door.

 _Get the pills! Secure the primary! Get him quiet!_

"Let me think!" she yelled as she pulled two pills out of the dirty shag carpet, ran to Todd, and shoved the pills into his mouth.

Soon the screaming had stopped, but he was still shaking and sobbing. Pararibulitis was a bit like a migraine. If you take the medicine at the first sign, it was pretty effective. But the longer the attack has to build, the less effective the pills become. She'd taken too long and the meds only took the edge off. He was clinging to her and breathing in pained, ragged breaths. She took a towel and draped it over his lower half.

Finally, Todd lifted his head and blinked. He seemed suddenly aware of his surroundings. It still managed to amaze Farah just how out of touch with reality he was during an attack.

Todd gasped and pushed away from her, clutching the towel tightly against himself.

"I'm sorry." He said, not making eye contact.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"Besides the fact that the only way this could be more humiliating is if I had literally shit myself, I'm fine."

Farah was about to say something trite about him having no reason to be embarrassed, but stopped herself. She couldn't even imagine what he was going through. She just got up and gave him some privacy.

It took him a long time to get dressed and come out. On the plus side, it gave her time to collect all the pills off of the floor and pick the mystery hairs off them before putting them back in the bottle. Todd finally emerged from the bathroom and stumbled towards his bed. Somehow he made it and collapsed onto his pillow.

Farah didn't sleep well again that night.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Farah was so tired. She needed sleep. She'd gotten so little the last two weeks on the road.

 _You're going to fall asleep and drive off the road._

Farah shook her head and pulled into a late night diner.

"I need coffee." She said.

Todd nodded. "Coffee sounds good."

They sat in a sticky booth and Farah tossed a menu at him.

"Get food. You've dropped at least ten pounds since we left Seattle."

Todd raised an eyebrow. "Really? You're monitoring my weight now?"

"It's my responsibility to assess your health and well being. Weight loss is a common side effect from your meds and you can't afford to lose too much. It will reduce your stamina and strength."

"So, do you think you're my bodyguard now?" he asked.

 _Yes._ Said her mind. "No." said her voice.

She was afraid she had insulted him, but he looked mildly amused.

"What can I get you?" asked a waitress with a husky voice and a stained uniform.

Todd looked up. "I'm apparently having the Deluxe Omelet with extra bacon and coffee with lots of room for cream." He looked over at Farah with a little half smile. "Satisfactory?"

Add another coffee for me and a cheese Danish to split." Said Farah.

"You spoil me." Said Todd.

Farah smiled. "Well, I did take you to the finest establishment in the area." She said.

The coffee was burnt, and the Danish was stale, but the company was pleasant as she and Todd had a fork battle over the last bite of Danish.

Farah felt the shift. Eyes, watching her.

 _Stay calm._

Todd couldn't sense it, but he could see the change in her.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Stay calm." She said.

Four large men and a rather formattable woman approached their table.

"Hey there, Gorgeous." Said the slimy leader of the group. "Mind if I sit down?"

 _Don't engage. It would rapidly escalate and put yourself and Todd in danger. Find a way to exit the building that causes as little disturbance as possible._

"Actually, we were just leaving."

He blocked her exit.

 _Sitting at a booth was a mistake. Amateur move._

"Oh, come on. You're new around here. I can show you the highlights."

"Thanks, but we're just on our way out." Said Todd as he tried to stand. One of the other men, easily twice Todd's size, shoved him back into his seat. Todd let out a sharp exhale as he landed hard onto the plastic seat of the booth. Farah felt a surge of fear, but Todd caught his breath. It wasn't the start of an attack.

 _Get out now without drawing too much attention. Blackwing will be looking for disturbances like this one. You know where the exits are. Get the primary and get out._

"What's your name, Babe?" asked the greasy leader as he slid into the booth beside her.

The woman and one who shoved Todd sat down on the other side, and smashed Todd against the wall. They all reeked of cheap alcohol and weed.

 _Whatever you do, don't make a scene. Just find a way out._

The one next to Farah leaned in. "How about I show you what a real man can do?"

 _Kick his ass._

As Gross Guy leaned in, Farah swung her legs around and kicked him so hard that he flew out of the booth seat and shot into the next table.

Farah launched herself to standing and everyone was so shocked that Todd was able to dive under the table and pop up at Farah's side.

The gang launched at them and Farah felt all the pent up rage, fear, and frustration from the past two weeks explode out of her like a cannon.

While the gang had only been five, there were more in the diner that were not about to see their friends go down without a fight.

Soon it was a sea of fists and thrown coffee cups and yelling.

Farah was so caught up on the fight that she didn't even realize she'd fought her way to the exit until Todd grabbed her shoulders and yanked her out the door and into the dark street. He grabbed her hand and they ran.

They lost the angry crowd quickly. They were just a collection of drunk, disorganized mob wannabes that gave up or forgot what they were doing almost the moment Farah and Todd were out of sight. But the two of them still ran. They ran hard. At first she thought they were running out of fear, then she realized something strange. She was laughing. She was laughing and so was Todd. Soon they were both laughing so hard they couldn't run anymore. They staggered to a stop behind a closed restaurant.

"What… what even was that?!" Todd shrieked between bouts of laughter.

"I know! It was like something out of a bad movie!" Farah howled.

"The look on his face when you kicked him!" Todd cried as he attempted to recreate the facial expression. They both doubled over with laughter.

When they finally caught their breath and wiped away the tears, they were sitting on some crates behind a restaurant.

Todd shook his head. "You were unreal! I mean, I've never seen you really fight before! You were incredible! Like it wasn't just ass kicking. It was art. It was the art of ass kicking!"

Farah burst out laughing again. "You weren't so bad yourself! I saw you knock that guy out with a rather formidable punch."

Todd smiled. "Well you see, this incredible woman I admire presented me with some brass knuckles, and I never leave home without them." He said as he showed off his right hand with the knuckles Farah gave him still on.

"You'll want to wash the blood off of that." Said Farah.

Todd looked mock offended. "But this is my trophy of the night I fought alongside the greatest warrior in the land and managed to punch one guy while she took on fifty."

"It wasn't fifty." She said.

"Well it was a lot and I somehow managed to not be a liability! So, if I kept a diary, this would be a night I'd write down in it."

"Dear Diary, I was in a fight and was not a liability." She said with a grin.

"I even helped a little." He added.

"You helped a lot! You're scrappier than I thought. I underestimated you."

"I'm choosing to take that as a compliment." He said.

"It is." Said Farah as she playfully shoved him.

He pushed back and they ended up both trying to shove the other off of the creates they were sitting on. They eventually stopped pushing and just leaned against each other, catching their breath and giggling.

Farah looked over at him and she felt a shift. No, that wasn't accurate. She realized the shift had happened some time ago, but this was the first she was consciously aware of it.

They were staring at each other, both frozen in place. Both feeling what was happening, but also unsure if the desire to move forward outweighed the fear of what could happen.

They leaned in slowly, watching closely for any sign that the other wanted to pull away. But that didn't happen. They just kept moving closer until their lips brushed together.

Farah had dated. Not a lot. Most guys were intimidated by her. And the ones that weren't usually saw her a challenge, just something to be conquered. Or they were just into tough ladies who know how to use a gun. On the rare instance she found someone that she thought there could be a real connection, he was always scared off once he got a glance of just how much anxiety and quirks were underneath. One guy once handed her a card for his shrink and begged her to please call.

 _A waste._

How many times had she heard those words? From the Navy Seal who said she was a waste of raw talent. The science teacher who said she was a waste of an excellent brain. And, of course, her father. He saw her as the biggest waste. A waste of all the advanced training he'd given her since she could walk. A waste of his impressive connections. A waste of the family DNA which had produced generation after generation of soldiers.

She could hear his voice as she was told she had been rejected by the FBI. When the Army Rangers said she wasn't mentally fit for their services. When she couldn't keep Patrick Spring alive.

He'd been so disappointed when she'd become a bodyguard.

"Well," he'd said flatly "I suppose you'll finally get to use a small portion of the resources I've poured into you. At least there will be some return for my efforts. However small it may be." He'd narrowed his gaze at her. "I suppose it's… something."

His words had cut her so deeply. She'd felt so ashamed walking into the Spring's employment. She almost talked herself out of showing up for her first day on the job. She had just started to really gain confidence there when Lydia vanished, and Patrick was killed.

She remembered the last time she saw Lydia before she sent her away to be safe from the Men of the Machine. She loved that child so much. It was difficult to watch her go, even if that was the best way to keep her safe. Lydia had looked her in the eye and told Farah to stop hiding what an amazing freak she was. She'd said how Farah came through with what she called her "army of weirdos". And coming from a girl who spent a significant amount of time as a corgi and whose father was a time traveling mad scientist, the words "freak" and "weirdo" had some weight.

Farah's mind went to the other people in her life. Dirk, the psychic detective and human puppy who was full of innocence and positivity despite living so much of his life being experimented on in a secret government facility. How he looked up to Farah and admired her skills and never acted like she was strange.

Amanda Brotzman. When Amanda first explained how her condition caused her to be agoraphobic, it seemed tragic. But the more Farah leaned about paraibulitis, the more amazed she was at what Amanda had done and her unbreakable spirit. And it was Amanda who first really reached out to Farah as a friend and peer. And when she found out Farah's quirks, she was intrigued rather than repulsed.

And Todd. Farah gently pulled back and Todd looked at her. She stared into his eyes and saw only respect and admiration. No judging. No searching for fault. No pity. He accepted her and looked up to her as she was, not as what she could be.

 _I'm one of the freaks!_ She thought happily. And her thoughts finally sounded like herself.


End file.
